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Other countries could experience oil production revolutions as untapped shale formations could hold larger amounts of technically recoverable oil than formations in North America, a report from IHS Global Insight says. North America contains about 43 billion barrels of commercially recoverable oil, but there are 148 shale plays that could hold 300 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil, according to the study. "This study makes clear that the potential for global tight oil is there and that it is very, very large," said Jan Roelofsen, research director at IHS.

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The Barnett Shale could contain double the amount of natural gas that was previously believed -- to the tune of 53 trillion cubic feet -- the US Geological Survey says. The estimate of "undiscovered, technically recoverable" reserves, raised after the success of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, also includes 176 million barrels of natural gas liquids and 172 million barrels of oil, the report said.

Apache seeks to get about $112 million from the sale of its oil and natural gas assets in Canada. The properties include a total of 5,300 wells that produced 38 million cubic feet of natural gas and 750 barrels of oil, condensate and natural gas liquids in the second quarter. "In Canada, Apache is focused on growing liquids production from a deep inventory of crude oil- and liquids-rich opportunities in Canada's Western Sedimentary Basin," said Rodney Eichler, Apache's president and chief operating officer.

Industry experts have witnessed growing interest in the Cline Shale formation in Texas over the past two years. "The information coming out on the Cline shale indicates up to 30 billion barrels of recoverable oil, which is substantially larger than other large plays," said M. Ray Perryman, head of The Perryman Group, an economic and financial analysis firm. The recoverable oil estimate could increase as drilling expands in the formation, Perryman added.

The U.S. Geological Survey has tripled its estimate for the "technically recoverable" oil and natural gas reserves contained in the Williston Basin, which spans Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. Production from the basin could reach 7.4 billion barrels of oil, 6.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 0.53 billion barrels of natural gas liquids, the agency said. "This new USGS study further confirms and reinforces the fact that the Williston Basin is a sustainable, long-term play warranting strong private-sector investment for decades into the future," said Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D.

The Cline Shale formation in West Texas could be bigger than prolific shale plays in Texas and North Dakota, observers say. The Cline play could contain about 30 billion barrels of oil in recoverable reserves, which is higher than the combined reserves estimates for the Eagle Ford Shale and Bakken Shale. "The big thing in the Cline is that results so far have been good," said Benjamin Shattuck, a Wood Mackenzie analyst.